


and if you wanna get groceries (and if you wanna get close to me)

by awakeanddreaming



Series: tear these walls down, and build them back up with memories [4]
Category: Figure Skating RPF
Genre: F/M, Family Feels, Fluff, ghost - Freeform, throwback week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2020-04-05 06:09:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19042711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awakeanddreaming/pseuds/awakeanddreaming
Summary: So, I’m excited to get to revisit one of my early works in the fandom. I posted “these four walls” last August, but had started writing it sometime in June. It was an experiment in writing from an outside POV, that of a ghost/spirit and I grew quite fond this AU and the little family I built. I’m super happy to get to give you all another little glimpse at this iteration of TS and of this lovely little family.As in keeping with the other works in this series, everything pre the birth of Audrey is in the POV of Mary and post the birth of Audrey it is in Tessa’s POV as Tessa’s vision of their life in this house in complete (being with Scott and having two girls is what she first saw when entering the house) and Mary “moves on”.I want to thank only_because3 for being such a trooper helping me through this chapter and also to everyone else who read and helped (sinkingsidewalks, miss_six).Title is from the song “groceries” by mallrat.





	and if you wanna get groceries (and if you wanna get close to me)

**Author's Note:**

> So, I’m excited to get to revisit one of my early works in the fandom. I posted “these four walls” last August, but had started writing it sometime in June. It was an experiment in writing from an outside POV, that of a ghost/spirit and I grew quite fond this AU and the little family I built. I’m super happy to get to give you all another little glimpse at this iteration of TS and of this lovely little family. 
> 
> As in keeping with the other works in this series, everything pre the birth of Audrey is in the POV of Mary and post the birth of Audrey it is in Tessa’s POV as Tessa’s vision of their life in this house in complete (being with Scott and having two girls is what she first saw when entering the house) and Mary “moves on”. 
> 
> I want to thank only_because3 for being such a trooper helping me through this chapter and also to everyone else who read and helped (sinkingsidewalks, miss_six).
> 
> Title is from the song “groceries” by mallrat.

 

_Early Spring 2025_

She’d known from the moment that she set foot in this house that the kitchen had been the central hub, the place where everyone gathered. So much had been shared in this room. It was so filled with love. Love etched into the door frame with the pencil ticks of children's growth, scratched into the tiles by legs of chairs being dragged about, burned into the counter where at some point in time a too hot pot was placed on the laminat. Even in its state of disrepair she could sense the moment she walked over the well worn tile that so many memories had been made and shared in this very room. Those who’d come before her had shared so much of themselves over good food, and great company.

Tessa has never held any talent in the kitchen. She is neither a chef nor a baker--most of the time she is lucky if she doesn’t burn the kitchen down. But all the same, she always hoped that her kitchen would be a place that bore special memories as it had for the families who came before hers.

“So, I think we need to add two cups of flour,” Tessa says, wiping the remnants of granulated sugar from her hands onto her apron.

“You sure, mommy?” Mary wiggles her nose and raises her eyebrows in question, and god if it doesn’t make her look just like her dad. Doubts Tessa’s competency in the kitchen just like her dad too.

Tessa smiles softly, wrinkles forming around her eyes, her cheeks dimpling, as she kisses her daughter on the nose. Mary giggles and sticks out her tongue.

She is in fact not sure if it is supposed to be two cups or one and a half, but she isn’t in the mood to let her five-and-a-half year old know that. She had already agreed to make cookies before checking to see if they had all the right ingredients, which was her first of many mistakes. Her second was misplacing her phone and therefore the cookie recipe. Mistake number three was forgetting that they needed to use the electric mixer and that the baby _had_ been sleeping. So she prepares for a disastrous attempt at cookie making but she hadn’t been able to say no to her daughter’s pleas to make cookies _for daddy,_ not with her big round green eyes looking up at her, so hopeful. Also, after a week solo with a cranky baby and a restless kindergartener she needs something to do to keep them occupied.

So, she now has Audrey strapped to her chest, contently sucking on her thumb, while she tries to improvise cookies with Mary. She hands Mary a levelled cup of flour and pushes the mixing bowl closer to where she stands at the edge of the island on her wooden kitchen stool.

“Alright kiddo, dump it in.”

Mary upturns the measuring cup and almost all of the flour makes it into the bowl, Tessa counts that as a success and hands Mary a second cup of flour--this one just a little bit overfull to hopefully make up for what was lost when Mary dumped the first. The second goes into the bowl just like the first, even more flour dusting the counter top.

“Okay baby girl, now we mix!”

Mary frowns at her, tiny fists balling up and going to her hips, “I’m not a _baby._ Audrey is a baby, I’m a big girl. I’m five.”

Tessa sighs, shaking her head with a chuckle, “That you are my girl, that you are.”

She’s struck for a moment, by the fact that they have a nearly six year old. Six years ago, she thinks, she was sitting at this very kitchen island, hands resting on the small bump that was finally beginning to form under hard muscle and soft skin, wondering what the future would hold. She and Scott had had an argument. It seems like such a drop in the bucket now, not even worth a single grain of rice, but back then it had been huge.

She sat at the island, alone. He’d gone out to get some fresh air and cool himself off. It was such a confusing time then, because though they were together and she was already desperately in love with the life they’d created, the baby that she could feel pushing down against her bladder, using it as a springboard, they weren’t _officially_ together. The world didn’t know their secret yet. She wanted so badly to keep it that way. To protect this new little life from the world and what it would say.

_Late Winter 2019_

The house is mostly dark, it isn’t late but the sun is already low in the sky ready to disappear beyond the horizon. The last remaining light of the day casts a low pink-orange glow through the kitchen window and the girl, Tessa, sits on one of the stools at the kitchen island. Her body is slumped over the granite countertop, head resting on one folded arm, while the other hand rubs gentle circles over her small belly. There is a near cold cup of tea sitting in front of her.

They’ve had an argument, the girl and the boy. It had been one of those arguments that was a long time coming, brewing for weeks with little asides here and there but nothing ever addressed. Not until the pressure was too much and the clouds opened up and everything poured out. It was a torrential kind of fight.

Mary remembers back to a time when things were tough, when she was just getting the studio off the ground, when they were trying and failing for another baby, when George was working too much, but not enough. She remembers how the little things would build up, one thing on top of another, an unsteady block tower that with one misplaced brick just topples leaving behind a pile of rubble either to be rebuilt or swept away.

“Tess, just come to the damn store with me. You’ll feel better if you leave the house,” the boy had said, with a heavy sigh, twirling his keys around on his index finger. The first poorly placed block.

She had rubbed her temples, then her slightly rounded belly. “Scott, I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Not right now.” The second, placed precariously on top of the first.

“For fucks sakes Tess,” he’d bit at his bottom lip and and breathed in harshly trying to get his words under control. “What’s your plan then? Stay hidden inside until July? Magically appear with a fatherless baby and let people guess to see if the baby looks like a Moir? We need groceries, you need to stop being cooped up, it’s been like a week since you’ve gone anywhere but here or your mom’s...just for once don’t think about what anyone will think and live your damn life. Our life.” Third, fourth, fifth.

The girl had closed her eyes for a second, either wishing to be somewhere else, or thinking carefully about what she needed to say next. Her breathing was sharp and shallow, her eyes looked tired, ringed a purple-blue. “Scott, you know it isn’t like that. I...I’m just not ready. I love you and I already love our baby so, so much and...and I love what we have, I’m not ready to break that bubble yet okay. I’m not ready to announce this to the world. To let everyone in on something that’s ours.”

The boy, frustrated, clutched his keys in his fist, “Tess, I get it, okay. I don’t want to make some big announcement, either, like we’re the royal fucking family, I just want to live our damn life. It’s our life and I don’t understand why you are so scared of anyone finding out.”

She looked at him and blinked back tears, her head shaking from side to side while both hands came to rest protectively over her belly. Mary wondered if maybe the fight would end right there. It looked for a moment like the girl, setting her shoulders and taking a deep breath was about to get off her stool and go to the store, argument over.

Instead she breathed in through her nose and then held it for a moment before letting out a noisy exhale through her teeth, still shaking her head, her voice rose slightly. “Scott, that’s the thing though, I have to announce it somehow. It might be fine for you to just live your life, you’re not growing a damn baby!” Both her hands came to rest on her bump, the level of her voice raising just a bit as she tried to hold onto her emotions.

She looked to him hopeful that he was understanding before continuing. “I don’t want to come home to a picture on twitter of my belly, with strangers questioning whether I’m pregnant or just fat. Guessing how far along I am and making up who the father might be. Making polls on whether or not this is a tour baby—“

“Well it kind of is,” he interrupted with a smirk and a shrug, clearly trying to lighten the mood. His attempt at levity was, however, met with a stern glare, her eyes narrowing, brow lowering and lips thinning, gaze cool like steel asking him to try her. “Sorry,” he added quickly.

“Scott, I can’t handle that. I’m stressed and tired and my pants don’t fit and I’m not ready for any of this. I’m not ready to make that announcement. Okay?”

He paused for a moment, taking in all that she had said, mulling over her words with a careful, concerned look on his face. When he spoke his voice was calm, collected, but still carried a certain edge to it, a challenge maybe. “Why aren’t you ready, Tess? It’s us. It’s you, it’s me, it’s 21 years together and a now it’s a baby that we made, together. How aren’t you ready for people to know that yet?”

“I don’t know...I...I...It doesn’t make sense okay, maybe it’s the hormones, maybe it’s me being dumb and not being able to get over the past...but what if, what if we don’t work...what if this doesn’t work and everyone knows we failed. What if this is too hard?”

Crash.

His jaw set, clenched tight, back teeth grinding against each other, keys held so tightly in his fist that they were bound to be leaving marks. “I can’t believe you think that. Do you think we don’t work? Do you think this is doomed? Do you think we won’t work hard to make this last? Don’t you believe in us?” He gestured wildly at the space between them.

“I do,” she said, barely audible through a sob that she tried to muffle in her sleeve. “I do believe in us...I just…”

“It doesn’t sound like it. I‘ve gotta go.”

“Scott, wait,” her voice was sharp, desperate. “That isn’t what I meant. It’s not. I’m just scared okay? I want to protect our bubble...our baby. I’m afraid—”

“Stop. Just. Stop. Stop worrying about everyone else,” he closed his eyes and sucked in a deep breath through his nose. “I’m gonna go now.” And he left, shoulders squared, head down the sound of the door slamming reverberating through the house.

“I’m afraid you’ll leave, and won’t come back,” she’d said, voice barely carrying to her own ears before she rested her head on her arms on the counter.

_Fall 2015_

“So,” the boy says, running a hand through his hair. “We’re doing this? We’re really doing this?”

The girl smiles and it’s the brightest smile Mary has seen on her in a while. Her pink flushed cheeks push up towards her eyes, her lips part, and her eyes glimmer with a child like giddiness. “We are.”

“We’re coming back,” he says, now sporting his own wide grin, as he holds his hand up for a high five.

She shakes her head, giggling as she does so, but obliges by slapping her palm against his, though nearly misses and mainly catches the side of his hand. They both start to laugh, light, infectious chuckles ring through the kitchen, as bright as the afternoon sun filtering through the open window.

The past year or so had been lonely for the girl and for the house. A feeling of longing, longing for purpose, for someone, for something she couldn’t quite define hung heavily throughout the house whenever she was home. Acting like a thick fog that wouldn’t lift. But this, this moment is the sun at the peak of a warm July day. It’s the beacon of light from a lighthouse beckoning you home. It’s salvation.

Mary smiles along with them—though they cannot see. It makes her think of the first successful year the dance studio had, when they had so many students Mary had to hire three more teachers to accommodate. She and George had danced through the kitchen, cheering like they were at a hockey game once they’d gone through all the numbers and realized they had in fact for the first year since they’d opened turned a decent profit. After, they’d taken the kids for dinner, then for a walk along the river with melting ice cream cones. She couldn’t stop smiling. It was hardly a month later she found out she was pregnant again and they danced their same happy gig through the kitchen again.

The kettle whistles from the stovetop and the girl disentangles herself from the boy, who has kept a steady grip on her hand since she’d gone to return his high five. She buisies herself getting down mugs and preparing cups of hot chocolate, on top of which she adds handfuls of mini marshmallows. She carefully hands a mug to him and he playfully raises his eyebrows at her, and then shakes his head ever so slightly.

“Before we have to give this all up,” she says in response, holding out her mug to him. “Cheers.”

He laughs, and clinks his mug against hers. “Cheers.”

“To coming back.”

“Yeah,” he smiles, observing her and he looks thankful, reverent and maybe a little in awe of the woman before him. “To coming back. _Together_.”

  


_Late Winter 2019_

She’s still slumped over the counter, rhythmically rubbing circles along her belly when he gets back home, grocery bags slung over his arms. She lifts her head up towards the sound of the door opening, relief clear on her face though her eyes are still red and puffy from crying.

“Tess?” he calls out hesitantly from the front door. “Hey, baby, where are you?”

“Kitchen still,” her voice comes out in a strangled croak and he rushes towards it.

Dropping the bags on the floor he crouches in front of her stool, finding her hands and taking them in his, pressing his lips to her knuckles.

“You came back,” she says softly her voice floating towards him.

“Of course. Of course I did. I just went to the store. I’m sorry I left like that.”

She nods. “I’m sorry too.”

“I love you and I love our baby and if you’re not ready to leave our little bubble yet that’s okay.” He still has her hands held in his, kneeling in front of her on the kitchen floor. He nestles himself in between her legs and presses his forehead to her belly before planting the lightest of kisses on it. Her hand comes down to gently thread through his hair, brushing stray strands off his forehead. “The two of you, that’s all that matters. How you feel is the most important.”

They stay like that quietly for a moment, looking at each other, talking without talking. It has always fascinated Mary how these two communicate without words, physical gestures often the only communication they need. She’s also watched how words left unsaid can be suffocating. As they get older they are getting better and better at expressing their feelings with words as well as physical touch and gestures. Sometimes they forget though, forget that even though some days it seems like they can read each other's moods, can intuit how the other will react, how they feel that they can’t actually read each other’s minds. A lot gets lost in misunderstanding.

“I’m sorry I made you think I doubted us,” her voice is quiet, like it’s a secret, as she gestures between them. “This is everything to me and I guess I’m scared of losing it. But you’re right it isn’t fair to either of us, to our baby for me to hide like this.”

“Tess, I need you to know there is no where else in the entire world I’d rather be than with you. Whether it is here, in this house--our home--or anywhere else in the world that you are. I will always want to come home to you.”

“I love you,” she says, taking his hands and pressing them against the swell of her stomach. “Both of you. And I think it’s time the world knows.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”  

  


_Fall 2019_

The boy is standing at the sink, sweatpants hanging low on his hips, back and chest bare, bottle brush in one hand, glass bottle in the other while he hums along to radio. The girl pauses in the kitchen doorway, bending to put down her purse and overnight bag so as not to make a sound, and leans against the door frame to watch him. A smile creeps across her face, it’s soft and loving and her eyes sparkle in the low light. She places a hand to her chest and her smile gets even wider as her gaze travels down the length of his spine to the curve of his ass, stopping to watch him sway his hips to the beat of whatever song he has playing. She can’t quite hear the lyrics to the song over the running water.

“Oh hi,” she says, finally—after he’s finished using the sudsy bottle brush in his hand as a microphone.

He spins around on his heels to face her, grin as wide as her own, before it falls slightly. “I didn’t hear you come in,” the tips of his ears redden. “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough,” she laughs, it’s light and quiet but infectious and fills the kitchen up with happiness, as she wiggles her hips in a mock impression of his dancing.

He puts the bottle and the brush down, wiping his hands on dry dish towel from next to the sink before he flips it over his shoulder. Now facing her, he does a little shimmy, incorporating his whole body. “So you were just standing there quietly, admiring my sexy moves?”

She’s laughing in earnest now, hand covering her mouth to stifle the sound. “Mhm,” she hums through breathless laughter, but she’s looking at his bare chest where the dish towel hangs over his shoulder and licks her bottom lip. “Definitely pretty sexy.”

“You know it Virtch,” he laughs, taking a step away from the sink.

She follows his lead and steps closer to him, until she can reach out and run her hands over the bare expanse of his chest, tugging playfully on the towel. “I missed you so much,” she says before placing a gentle kiss on his lips.

He kisses her back, pulling her into him by the hips. “Missed you too,” he says pulling away just enough. “We both did.”

She peaks over his shoulder at the video baby monitor beside the sink where their daughter sleeps in the middle of the grainy grey image. The girl sighs and leans her head against the boy’s shoulder. “I missed her so much. How did everything go? It was okay, right?”

She’d called him four times in the past twenty four hours, so she should already know the answer. Each time he’d acted calm and collected as he spoke to her, seemingly, even from a distance intuiting her anxiety and need for reassurance. It was the first time since their little one, Mary’s namesake, was born that the girl had left her for more than a few hours. She’d been on edge the whole day before her trip, anxiety taking up more of her time than the trip itself had.

“Tess, it was great. She was great,” he lies. Mary knows he is lying because she’d witnessed him struggle with a fussy baby, bags under his eyes, for hours the night before. The poor little thing had refused to settle for him, clearly missing the comfort of her mama. She’d wailed and thrashed her little arms, pushing away the bottle he offered until finally she succumbed to exhaustion and fell asleep nearing midnight. He’d looked so heartbroken, frayed at the edges, when she’d called after that to ask how bedtime went. He lied a bit then too, said Mary had a bit of trouble settling but had gone to sleep after a short while. And today the poor wee one had spit up on her tired but determined dad several times before he gave up on wearing a shirt at all.

Mary wonders if George ever did this, fibbed just a bit in those early years when she’d have to spend late nights at the studio or the entire day at a dress rehearsal. Did he tell her things were okay when really they’d been hard? Just so she didn’t feel anymore guilt than necessary, knowing how difficult it was for her, as it was, to leave her babies.

The girl lifts her eyebrows at him either in question, not believing things went as smooth sailing as he says, or maybe a bit hurt at the idea that her daughter who has needed her so much in these first few months of life was fine without her. He seems to sense this and runs a hand through her hair and kisses her cheek. “She missed her mama for sure though. We had a bit of trouble settling for daddy last night, and there might be a bit of extra laundry today. But it was good kiddo, we were fine. We missed you, so much, but we were good. Did you have a good time in Toronto with your mom and Jo? Sign some contracts? Go shopping?”

This seems to be exactly what she needed to hear, she looks up at him and it can only be described as pure love and devotion. She tilts her head, breathes in deep and gives him a soft smile that says _thank you._ “I did. It was good. Really good, but I missed you guys so damn much.”

He laughs a bit, but looks serious, his brow lowering, eyes narrowing slightly. “I get that. It’s been so hard every time I have to leave you two to coach. I miss you girls so much, even though I love what I do. There is no where in this world I’d rather be than here with my favourite girls. Did you get a dress?”

She smiles and nods, maybe a little shyly, “I did.”

“Oooh,” he draws out the sound and winks at her, “what does it look like?”

“You’ll have to wait and see.”

He frowns, though clearly in jest and makes a little humph noise before kissing her noise. “I’m sure it’s beautiful.”

She snuggles into his chest then, her arms coming to wrap around his body. Her fingers make their way down his back and find their way under the elastic of his sweatpants to palm his ass, but they stop.

“Mr. Moir,” she laughs, “are you not wearing underwear?”

“I told you, I need to do laundry.”

She’s laughing with her head pressed against his chest, shaking them both. “I was only gone for a day and a half!”

“Welcome home love,” he says, before his lips find hers, effectively stopping her laughter.

  


_Early Spring 2025_

By the time the last batch of cookies are in the oven Audrey is still nestled against her chest, contently sucking her thumb, a string of drool trailing off her chubby little fist and onto Tessa’s shirt. Tessa kisses the soft dark hair on top of her head and Audrey babbles something around her spit soaked hand. Tessa is surprised she hasn’t gotten restless yet after being contained so long in the carrier, but she seems very happy to be still and pressed up close to her mama—maybe because she had a short nap and is just on the tail end of a cold, one of many Mary has brought home from school with her this year.

Tessa sets the timer on the oven for 20 minutes and turns to find Mary on her kitchen helper stool trying to reach the batch that Tessa had just taken out of the oven.

“No!” she nearly shouts, her voice sharp and loud, as a set of pudgy pink fingers nearly reaches the edge of the aluminum baking tray. Mary immediately retracts her hand. “Mary, love bug, that’s still very hot. You’ll burn your fingers.”

“But I want to try one,” Mary pouts in protest. “I need to taste them to make sure they are good for daddy.”

Tessa shakes her head and laughs but Mary looks so serious. She misses her dad and was so determined they make him a treat for when he gets home, which honestly can’t come soon enough. The cookies seem like they turned out well enough despite her having had to use a bit of guesswork on remembering all the measurements. The consistency looks good and they smell delicious so she’ll call it a win.

“You can try one,” she reaches for one on the cooling rack. “But one of the cool ones and only _one_. You can have another when daddy gets home.”

Mary happily takes the cookie from Tessa’s outstretched hand and skips off towards the family room where her barbies are scattered across the coffee table and _Inside Out_ is playing for the seventh time this week.

“And what about you, my little snuggle bug,” she says softly, combing a hand through her younger daughter’s curls.“Do you want down? Mama’s back is a little sore, why don’t we go play?”

Audrey snuggles further into her mom knowing she is about to be put down, looking up at Tessa with what amounts to a baby scowl. She looks so like Scott with her big hazel eyes and dark, fluffy hair, even more so when she is smiling and laughing and being the center of attention but even her sleepy, cuddly self she is so much like her dad. She reaches her hand under the hem of Tessa’s shirt, grabbing at her breast which has been her new comfort thing as Tessa has been slowly trying to wean her. Her slobbery fist makes it under Tessa’s bra and Tessa shakes her head and laughs while she gentle pulls her daughter’s hand away, “You really are just like your dad, eh?”

“Da?” Audrey says, her voice rising at the end like a question.

“Yeah baby, Daddy. He’ll be home soon.”

“Da!”

Tessa takes her over to the living room where Mary has left cookie crumbs and a half eaten cookie on the coffee table and has gone back to playing with her dolls while half watching her movie. Tessa lays out Audrey’s play mat on the floor and dumps some of her favourite toys down, including a handful of teethers that have been a godsend lately. She carefully gets Audrey out of her carrier and plops her on the mat while Mary chats away to her barbies, dressing and undressing them, deep in own little make believe world.

Audrey frowns and reaches her arms up towards Tessa, “Mummummummum.”

Tessa sits on the floor in front of her and tries handing her various toys, “Here baby, mommy will cuddle you again later it’s time to play now.”

She finally has Audrey engaged playing with her little light up piano when the oven timer goes off.  She gets up and turns to Mary who is still engrossed in whatever make believe world she’s made for her dolls, “Mary, love, make sure to keep all the Barbie things on the table so Audrey can’t put them in her mouth, mommy is just going to take out the cookies, kay?”

Mary nods and Tessa goes to the kitchen. She’s just getting the cookies on the cooling rack when she hears the front door open and close, Scott’s voice bouncing off the hallway walls and into the kitchen. “Hellooooo!” he calls, as his footsteps get closer.

Tessa turns just in time to see Mary darting past her as Scott gets to the kitchen doorway. “Daddy!” she yells, literally leaping into her father’s arms, wrapping her little body around him. Tessa watches as his entire body relaxes into their daughter’s embrace, he lifts her up higher and hugs her in close to his chest.

“I missed you so much kiddo,” he says kissing the top of her head.

“Da!” Audrey’s happy shrieks reverberate through the room as she uses her chubby little arms to pull herself up and over the step between the family room and the kitchen. “Daaaaaa!!!!”

Once on level ground Audrey begins to crawl at top speed towards Scott, pulling herself to standing using his pant leg once she gets there. “Dada!”

He shifts Mary onto one hip and bends down to lift Audrey with his other arm, “Hi baby! Daddy missed you too.”

Tessa puts her hand to her heart as she watches the man she loves, has loved for most of her life, with their children and she feels so full of warmth. She feels complete.

“Daddy, I made you cookies,” she hears Mary say. “Mommy helped and Audrey a little bit too.”

“Oh yeah?” he asks, looking over at Tessa and raising his eyebrows, then eying the evidence of their cookie making endeavors all over the kitchen. Tessa just shrugs and smiles at him. She knows that her smile looks tired, that she has bags under her eyes, that her crows feet are painfully obvious, but she hopes he can see how much love she is trying to imbue into a single look. It’s a _welcome home, I missed you,_ and _I love you so much_ all in one.

He smiles back, over the heads of their daughters and it’s a _nowhere else I’d rather be._

  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
